kra proctor guidelines - kready proctor guidelines(1).pdfthe app uses a pin feature for the teacher...

Ready for Kindergarten: Early Childhood Comprehensive Assessment System 1

Kindergarten Readiness Assessment Proctor Guidelines

Introduction

This document provides guidance for a proctor to support a Kindergarten Readiness Assessment

(KRA)-trained kindergarten teacher to administer assessment items via the KRA App. Specifically, this document outlines:

• The roles and responsibilities of a KRA App Proctor

• KRA App allowances for students


About the Kindergarten Readiness Assessment (KRA)

The Kindergarten Readiness Assessment, part of the Ready for Kindergarten: Early Childhood Comprehensive Assessment System is designed to:

• measure entering students’ skills and abilities in relation to end-of-prekindergarten

standards;

• identify individual children’s needs, gaps in foundational learning and necessary

supports;

• assist teachers with data-driven instructional planning, intervention, and enrichment;

• inform decision-makers about professional development needs;

• inform prior early learning and development stakeholders; and

• provide families with information about their children’s learning and development.

The Kindergarten Readiness Assessment provides information about what foundational

knowledge and skills children have and can demonstrate as they transition into kindergarten

and what supports they will need to actively and effectively engage in and benefit from

classroom instruction. The Kindergarten Readiness Assessment includes items that measure

school readiness indicators in the developmental content areas of Social Foundations, Language and Literacy, Mathematics, and Physical Well-Being and Motor Development.

The Kindergarten Readiness Assessment is a statewide assessment that will be administered to

all kindergarten students, therefore, parents cannot opt their child out of participating in the

Kindergarten Readiness Assessment. The Kindergarten Readiness Assessment must be

completed annually for all entering kindergarten students at the beginning of the school year

and ending no later than the first day of November.

It is required that the Kindergarten Readiness Assessment be administered by test administrators

who are employees of the school district and hold a license/certificate/permit issued by the State

Department of Education. Kindergarten teachers must receive the two-day training on the

Kindergarten Readiness Assessment and take the content and simulator assessments (receiving

a score of at least 80% on each one). Specialized educators, ESOL, and other certified teachers

who have met all training requirements are eligible to administer the Kindergarten Readiness

Assessment. Any fully trained teachers may assist in administering the Kindergarten Readiness

Assessment. The teacher of record assumes overall responsibility for assuring that the reported data is an accurate representation of that student.


Kindergarten Readiness Assessment Technology

The Ready for Kindergarten Online system is the web-based system that captures scores for each

kindergarten student on the Kindergarten Readiness Assessment. There are 50 items on the KRA.

Direct performance items use selected response and performance task activities to assess

children’s knowledge and skills. A selected response item is a single question with three options

from which students choose the correct response. There is only one correct answer. A

performance task requires children to complete an activity or action, such as arranging a series

of objects according to a set of instructions. Performance tasks are scored based on the

proficiency and accuracy of the child’s performance and partial credit is given based on how the

child performs. Observational items involve an observational rubric, which describes specific

behaviors along a developmental continuum. Observational items can be administered to

groups of children as part of typical daily classroom routines. Observational items are scored based on the quality of a child’s response or behavior.

A portion of the KRA items can be administered and scored using the KRA App. These app items

are either selected response or performance tasks. The KRA App was developed as an alternative

way to administer and score items. While classroom assistants may not directly administer KRA

items, a proctor role has been established for supporting the administration of 13 of the 17 items

using the KRA App. In addition, the trained teacher has flexibility to administer the 17 KRA App

items directly rather than using the app.

The Role of KRA App Proctors

A student interacts with the app through a tablet such as an iPad or Android device or through a

desktop or laptop computer with a mouse. The app provides directions to the student and scores

the items. Therefore, the person proctoring a student(s) plays a limited role. The teacher of

record accesses the KRA app with her account credentials and then gives the device(s) to the

person serving as the proctor or directly to the student(s). The role of the KRA App Proctor is to sit with a student and monitor the student as he or she completes the app items.

Who can be a KRA App Proctor?

A teacher assistant (school system employee) or a teacher may serve as a proctor if they

complete a required training and sign a nondisclosure agreement. The administration of the

virtual items should occur in the room with the teacher of record in the event additional support is needed.


Proctor Responsibilities and Duties

To become a proctor, the teacher assistant or teacher must:

• sign a nondisclosure agreement

• read this training document

• complete the brief self-check assessment

• communicate with the classroom teacher that the training materials has been read

thoroughly

• complete the signature page along with the teacher and provide a copy of the signature

page and nondisclosure agreement to the designated person overseeing Kindergarten Readiness Assessment administration and test security

Test Security

The test administrators, i.e., teachers of record, must be certified for the KRA administration.

These test administrators as well as KRA App Proctors are bound to abide by the regulations governing test security violation, namely any violation whereby test administrators:

a) Give students access to test items through repeated practice prior to testing for scoring;

b) Give unauthorized individuals (e.g., parents) access to test items or materials;

c) Copy, reproduce, use, or otherwise disclose in any manner inconsistent with the test

security regulations any portion of test materials, including recorded evidence of student

test performance;

d) Provide clues or answers orally or by other means unless specified as appropriate in the

e) Guidelines on Allowable Supports for Administration of the Kindergarten Readiness

Assessment or the KRA App Allowances;

f) Coach students during testing by giving them answers to the test questions or altering

the students’ responses to test items;

g) Fail to keep test materials under lock and key on school;

h) Fail to properly monitor test administration, including permitting inappropriate

collaboration among peers;

i) Participate in, direct, assist, or fail to report test security violations;

j) Fail to complete all test items by the specified closing time and date, i.e., midnight November 1.

Test administrators shall advise their classroom assistants about the test security regulations and set of violations.


How to Proctor the KRA App: Directions for Proctors

Proctoring environment:

The KRA App should be proctored in the kindergarten classroom so the proctor has direct access to the kindergarten teacher in case there are any questions.

Equipment:

The KRA App is available on iPad and Android devices as well as a desktop or laptop computer.

For iPads, it is strongly recommended that teachers deactivate Apple’s multi-touch gestures as these features can be troublesome for little hands. To deactivate multitasking gestures:

• In Settings (iOS 7), General - Multitasking Gestures: toggle green button to off position

(will be grayed out)

• In Settings (iOS 7), General - Accessibility: make sure all controls are set to off position

(will be grayed out)

The KRA App requires audio. It is important that the student is able to clearly hear the audio from the app, as there are important directions within each item.

Setting Up the KRA App:

1. Ask the teacher to login to the KRA App using the teacher’s Ready for Kindergarten Online system credentials.


2. Follow the directions in the KRA App to set up the assessment for the desired student by selecting the student’s name from the roster provided.

3. Once you select a student, a list of the app items will appear. A purple circle next to the

item indicates that the item has not yet been administered to the student. The first item a

student sees will be the first item shown that has the purple circle. Click on the Next

button to begin administration.


4. You will see a screen that prompts you to give the device to the student. Place the tablet

in front of the student or ask the student to sit in front of the computer. At this point, the student can begin interacting with the app.

5. As the proctor, you are to observe the child as he or she completes the items. It is

recommended that you sit near the student(s) or position yourself so you can monitor the

students’ actions.


The PIN Feature:

The app uses a PIN feature for the teacher to use the app’s teacher functionality. The teacher

may provide this PIN to you. You will be prompted to enter the PIN each time you go back to the

teacher’s menu.

Administration of the KRA App:

The Kindergarten Readiness Assessment app has been tested extensively with a variety of

teachers and students. In general, teachers had a great deal of success administering items in

the app when they allowed students to have sufficient time to respond to each one. If, however,

you can see that a student is having trouble interacting with an item due to the technology, we

encourage you to use some of the allowable technical supports listed below. In any instance, if a

student has made a selection and forgets to touch the large green button to submit an answer, you may say, “if you have chosen your answer, you should touch the green check mark.”

KRA App Allowances:

Below you will find specific allowable prompts that you can use when administering the KRA

items. All of these KRA items (with the exception of the tutorial/practice item) are in the Teacher

Administration Manual. You can review the specific items with the teacher to gain a better

understanding of the content of these items.


Tutorial/Practice Item:

The tutorial is designed to help students get comfortable using the app. Students can play it

several times if needed. While listening to the tutorial, if a student is hesitant, you can ask the

child if she or he needs further explanation about the buttons: orange button - replays

instructions, green check mark - submits final answers, or the selection of a response. You should encourage students to repeat the tutorial as many times as necessary.


The tutorial item asks the student to touch the green button when ready to move to the next

item. Each item in the KRA App prompts the student to move forward by touching the green

button. At any point, if the student has completed the item and hasn’t clicked the button, you

can ask, “Are you finished?” and then prompt the student to touch the green button to move

forward.

Match Shapes Item (Item Id: MA.4.1.A_A177)

If a student hesitates, encourage him or her to listen to the directions again by selecting the orange button.

Compare Lengths (Item Id: MA.3.2.A_A152)

To begin, this item will prompt a student to move a stick. If the student does not move the stick,

encourage him or her to touch and drag it around, so that the item will continue. If the student

begins to move the stick and plays with it for a prolonged period of time, encourage the child to

select an answer.

Order Objects By Size (Item Id: MA.3.2.B_A174)

Some students may try to drag the animals out of the horizontal grey box toward the top or

bottom of the screen. Encourage them to move the animals within the grey box, or along the

straight line in which they are displayed, if they have trouble.


Sort By One Attribute (Item Id: MA.3.1.B_A123)

If a student is not placing the picture cards fully into the pens, they may snap back to their

original position. Encourage the student to be sure to get the cards inside the dotted orange

lines that outline the pens. Some students may try to be very neat with the card placement in the pens; you can let these students know that the cards can overlap.

Determine Amount Needed To Complete Set (Item Id: MA.2.1.B_A138)

If a student is not dragging the ladybug dots inside the black dotted lines that define the

ladybug, the dots may snap back to their original position. Encourage the student to be sure to

get the dots inside the dotted line that outlines the ladybug. Some students may try to be very neat with the dot placement; you can let these students know that the dots can overlap.

Identify Set That Is “More Than” (Item Id: MA.3.1.D_A143)


Identify Set That Is “Less Than” (Item Id: MA.3.1.D_A147)

If a student hesitates, encourage him or her to listen to the directions again by selecting the

orange button.

Identify Set That Is “Equal To” (Item Id: MA.3.1.D_A149)


Name Numerals And Pair With Sets (Item Id: MA.1.1.G_A117)

If a student does not know what to do, you can encourage him or her to listen to the instructions

again or to “drag the number that matches each set into the boxes with the dotted lines above

each set.”

Use Prepositions (Item Id: LL.4.1.D_A160)

This item has four prompts for the student. If the student hesitates, encourage him or her to listen to the directions again by selecting the orange button.


Identify Rhyming Words 1 (Item Id: LL.1.2.D_A27)


Identify Rhyming Words 2 (Item Id: LL.1.2.D_A27)


Identify Beginning Sound (Item Id: LL.1.2.A_A163)

If a student hesitates, encourage him or her to listen to the directions again by selecting the

orange button.

Completing the Administration

Once these 13 items have been completed, a STOP screen will appear. What follows this screen

are four additional items that need to be administered by the teacher. When you see this STOP

screen, please let the teacher know that the student has completed the items. The remaining

four items are structured differently than the first 13 and require a fully KRA-trained teacher to

administer.

Additional KRA App Administration Considerations – When to Stop the Test

If a student is unable to participate in the KRA App administration, please let the teacher know.

The teacher may decide to stop administration of the assessment and either administer items via

the app at a later date or directly administer items herself. Examples of cases where you may stop

administration is if the child is ill, very distracted, or is not able to complete the task even after

the allowable prompts are used.

To stop administration at any time within the KRA App, hold down the Teacher’s Menu button for

at least three seconds until the PIN screen appears.

A student does not have to complete all of the app items in one sitting. At any time during the

administration of the tutorial and first 13 items, the app can be stopped and started.


Signature Page

Kindergarten Readiness Assessment Proctor Training Completion

It is my intent to proctor KRA administration sessions to the best of my abilities. I have read and

agree to comply with all of the requirements, rules, and regulations listed in the Proctor Training

Module and Guidelines. I further state that I will comply with future revisions to this guide.

I understand that if I fail to comply, my proctor status will be revoked.

______________________________________________________________

Signature of Proctor

______________________________________________________________

Date

______________________________________________________________

Signature of Kindergarten Teacher

______________________________________________________________

Date

Please provide a signed copy of this page as well as a signed nondisclosure agreement to the designated administrator involved in KRA administration and test security.

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